


Duet

by orphan_account



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/F, Modern AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-29
Updated: 2016-04-09
Packaged: 2018-05-29 19:51:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,128
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6390928
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Under no circumstances will that mechanic ever be allowed to touch Natasha's piano.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Having her car refuse to start was the last thing Natasha Romanoff needed right now. Well, second to last. The stupid piano in her apartment continued to gather dust and be the most useless thing in her life, but this came pretty close. Now her evening was destined to be wasted while she sat and waited for a tow truck, and then a mechanic. 

By the time she and her car arrived at the repair shop, all Natasha wanted was a glass of wine, but unfortunately, the repair shop only had a water cooler. So she sipped from her little paper cup as she waited for someone to come to the front desk, lamenting the loss of a relaxing evening. 

“Can I help you, ma’am?” A voice caught Natasha’s attention, and she looked up to see the woman who had come to help her. She had short black hair, blue eyes, and for a moment, her muscular arms distracted Natasha enough that she almost forgot to speak.  _ Well. Eye candy is a slight improvement on the evening.  _

“Yes, thank you,” Natasha said, hoping the woman hadn’t noticed her brief stare. “My car won’t start. I imagine it’s the battery or something. I had to have it towed here.” She swore she hadn’t left the headlights on all night, but then again, she had gotten this car used, and had no idea how old the battery was. 

“We should be able to fix that,” the woman said, giving her a polite smile. Their eyes met, and Natasha looked away after a few seconds, trying not to embarrass herself. This evening could get just a little worse if she made an idiot of herself in front of the hot mechanic, and she’d rather not have it go that direction, seeing as the evening was already crappy. 

“I just need you to fill out this form, and then I’ll get started.” The woman handed her a clipboard, and as Natasha took it, she caught a glimpse of her nametag.  _ Maria.  _ She almost hoped she would have a reason to come here again and see her, but then the rational part of her brain reminded her that she really didn’t need any more expensive car repairs. 

“Can I have your keys?” Maria asked once Natasha had turned in the form, and Natasha dug in her purse, handing Maria the car keys. Their hands brushed briefly, and as soon as Maria’s hand was gone, she wished she could touch it again.  _ Get a grip, Romanoff. She’ll be out of your life within the hour.  _

Once Maria was gone, Natasha sat down, filled with a strange mix of nerves and annoyance. There was a glass window looking into the garage, so once Maria pulled her car inside, Natasha watched her work, thoroughly enjoying the view. Maria was obviously well practiced at what she did, and she moved around the car like it was her second home, checking and fastening and replacing. After a while, Natasha saw her remove the battery, and she sighed deeply. She had suspected it was the battery, but that meant a couple hundred dollars would be gone from her bank account soon.

Once Maria had replaced the battery, she continued to work, and Natasha wondered if there were other things wrong with the car. She didn’t exactly want to pay more money, but she figured it was better to fix everything now than later, and have to come back here. A small voice in her mind said that she’d like to see Maria again, but she squashed the voice, knowing that was silly. Finally, Maria came out again, and although Natasha was enjoying the view, she was ready to cringe once she saw the bill. 

“All right, I replaced your battery,” Maria said, handing Natasha the bill. Natasha stifled a faint wince, but it wasn’t as bad as she thought. As she looked at it, there were some other services mentioned, but to her bewilderment, she wasn’t being charged for them. She looked up at Maria, confused. Maria reached up to scratch at her hair for a moment, seeming embarrassed.

“There were some things in your car I could fix pretty easily, so I decided to do that. All of that’s on me, by the way. Don’t worry about it,” Maria said, and Natasha blinked in surprise. That was almost unheard of at a repair shop, and Natasha suddenly wondered if Maria was interested in her. She couldn’t exactly say she would object to that. 

“That’s really kind of you, thank you. I’ll be sure to come back here again next time my car needs work,” Natasha said, and suddenly, the idea of not seeing Maria again for a long time seems almost torturous.  _ Stop thinking with your clit, Romanoff. Just because she’s nice doesn’t mean she’s into you.  _ Maria gave her a warm smile, though, and Natasha knew she was already toast.  _ Fuck.  _

“Glad we could be of service,” Maria said. Natasha felt Maria’s eyes on her as she paid the bill, and the (possibly imagined) tension between them was almost too much for Natasha to bear. Finally, when she was finished, she scribbled her number on the repair shop’s copy of the receipt, with a little “Text me. Nat.” on the side. 

With that one action, however, she had reached her embarrassment quota for the day, so she gave Maria a little wave, and then rushed out of the shop into the safety of her car. She took the long way home to try and calm herself down, finding it absurd that she had gotten so flustered about one hot mechanic. Maybe they could just sleep together and she’d get this out of her system. She knew better than to try and date anymore, it wasn’t going to work.

Still, though, that didn’t stop the brief flutter she felt when her phone pinged later that night. 

_ Hey, Nat? This is Maria from the repair shop. Thanks for your number. ;) _

 


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as Maria sent the text, she was positive she had just made a massive idiot of herself.  _ A winky face. Really? What are you, a teenager?  _

The woman - no, Nat - had immediately made an impression on Maria, but she hadn’t expected her to give out her number. Maria had gone down enough straight girl dead ends to be cautious, but thankfully, for once, there was no mistaking Nat’s intentions. She wondered what Nat stood for - Natalie, Natalia, Natasha? All of them were lovely, she decided. 

Her phone pinged again, making her jump. It took her a moment to look at it, and she assumed the worst. Nat probably already thought she was an idiot. When she looked at the text, however, her face lit up a little in surprise.

_ Couldn’t resist a handsome mechanic.  _

Maria felt herself blushing, and she was suddenly very glad she was off work and alone. Her boss, Nick, would tease her for weeks if he saw her blushing over a girl. Maria tried to keep up a reputation of being a hardass, and although Nick knew she was kind of a softie on the inside, he pretended like he didn’t. Which was just fine with her. 

_ Want to meet up for drinks sometime?  _ It was surprisingly hard to send that text, but Maria made herself do it. She didn’t know what was wrong with her - usually, she didn’t have much trouble asking out women. The fact that she was already so nervous scared her a little, so she tried not to think about it. The idea that this woman might matter to her someday was kind of frightening.  _ Slow down, Hill.  _

It was an agonizing half hour before Nat answered, and Maria nearly rocketed off her bed when she heard her phone ping. It took her another five minutes to turn over the phone to see her answer, but when she saw Nat’s reply, she felt a giddy rush.

_ I’m free tonight, if you are. I know a good cocktail bar around here you might like.  _

Maria immediately sent back an emphatic yes, realizing after the fact that she might come off as over enthusiastic, but at least Nat seemed to be into her. To her relief, Nat didn’t comment on it, and they arranged plans to meet later that night. 

It took forever for Maria to figure out what to wear, but she finally settled on a sapphire blue dress shirt and black dress pants, hoping she looked presentable. She made sure her short crop of black hair was arranged neatly, and then she went on her way, her nerves increasing the closer she got to the bar. Over the years, she had become pretty smooth with women, but apparently that was going to fly out the window tonight.

When she saw Nat, her ability to speak vanished momentarily. Nat was wearing a dark green cocktail dress, her curly red hair swept into a casual updo. Somehow the green matched her eyes perfectly, and Maria floundered for a moment, trying to remember how to be a person.

“Hey,” she managed, hoping she didn’t sound like a complete idiot. She gave Nat a little wave, and Nat gave her a pleased little smile. 

“Nice to see you again. You clean up nice,” Nat said, walking into the bar beside Maria. Maria felt a mix of relief and nerves. At least Nat didn’t think she looked ridiculous. 

“I try not to go on dates in oil-smeared tank tops,” Maria joked, but the look Nat gave her made her think Nat had most definitely enjoyed seeing Maria in her mechanic’s outfit.  _ Christ, I’m not going to survive the night.  _ Once they sat down, they ordered drinks, and then Maria momentarily panicked, trying to figure out how to start a conversation.

“So. Is Nat a nickname for anything? I’ve been wondering,” Maria said. Nat looked even more enticing in the low light of the bar, and Maria could see her jewelry sparkle. Nat was so much of Maria’s “type” that it wasn’t even funny, and she felt like she was already lost.

“Natasha.” When Nat - no, Natasha - spoke, Maria felt a flare of recognition. Of course her name was Natasha, Maria had seen it on the forms she had filled out at the repair shop. Maria immediately felt like a massive idiot, and tried to play it off.

“I guess I was so distracted when you came to the repair shop that I wasn’t paying that much attention to what you wrote down,” Maria said, and she could have sworn she saw Natasha blush faintly. That was a small victory, at least.

“I’m glad I’m not the only one who was distracted, then. Should I be worried about what you did to my car?” Natasha asked, and Maria panicked again, unable to read her face. Natasha laughed. 

“ _ Joking.  _ My car runs fine, thanks to you. You did a great job,” Natasha said, and now it was Maria who was blushing.  

“Good, I’m glad to hear it. I take pride in doing my job well.” Maria took a sip of her drink, trying to mask how embarrassed she was. It was a good kind of embarrassed, but Natasha seemed very good at catching her off guard. 

The conversation changed to typical date chit-chat as they finished their drinks, but before they ordered a second round, suddenly Natasha’s hand was on Maria’s. Maria felt her heart rate double, and she forgot how to think in words again for a moment. 

“My place isn’t that far. What do you say we get out of here?” Natasha’s voice was low, and Maria could barely hold herself together.  _ Oh, god.  _ The idea was incredibly tempting, but then the logical part of her brain brought her back to reality. She wasn’t so much into hookups these days, and she just had this feeling that if she and Natasha had a fun night on the first date, she wouldn’t see her again. There was something about Natasha that made Maria feel like she could slip through her fingers if she did the wrong thing.

“Actually, I, uh - “ Maria floundered, and Natasha’s face fell. Maria cringed inwardly, wishing she was more smooth. “Maybe not tonight? I want to get to know you a little better first, that’s all.” Natasha nodded, looking embarrassed. The flirty energy between them was gone now, and it was clear they were both flustered. 

“I mean, it’s not that I wouldn’t  _ enjoy _ it, I’m just...I’m not a one night stand type of person.”  _ Not anymore, at least.  _ Maria had pipe dreams of having a stable, loving relationship one day, and she had finally realized that chasing one night stands wasn’t going to do it for her. They were fun, but they never amounted to anything, and she wanted something more meaningful for her now that she was getting older. 

“That’s all right,” Natasha said, and then she changed the subject, switching it back to normal date subjects. There was the sense that things had changed between them, though, and the rest of the date was a little stilted. Maria’s inner dialogue was a stream of chastising and tearing herself down, even though there was no real way she could have handled that better. 

Finally, they finished the date, and Maria paid for them both, hoping to win Natasha’s favor back a little. Natasha still looked a little disappointed, and Maria felt terrible, but she didn’t want to compromise on what she had said, either. She knew if she went back to Natasha’s apartment, she would lose all of her restraint, and they wouldn’t be able to just kiss. 

“This was a really nice night out, thank you for inviting me,” Maria said, once they were outside of the bar and on the sidewalk. Natasha smiled, but it was the faintest bit sad, and Maria wished she could fix it. Mustering up all of her nerves, she leaned down to give Natasha a chaste kiss on the lips, leaning into it for a moment. 

When their lips touched, Maria could already feel the sparks, and she knew there would be no hope for her if she went home with this woman. She wasn’t sure what this was, but it was  _ something,  _ and she’d be furious with herself if she fucked it up. Finally, Natasha pulled away, brushing a strand of Maria’s hair behind her ear. The gentle touch surprised her, and Maria felt her cheeks turn a little red. 

“I’ll see you again soon?” Maria said, her voice quiet in the night air. 

“I’ll text you,” Natasha said, giving her a soft smile. “Thanks for a nice night.”   
  
And then she was gone, leaving Maria feeling a mixture of elation and regret. Now all there was to do was wait, which was going to kill her. She was determined not to be clingy, and if Natasha wanted to see her again, that was up to her.

_ Please, let this work out. For once in my life.  _


	3. Chapter 3

“Fuck you!”

Natasha realized it was idiotic to yell at a piano, but it was the only outlet for her frustration in her empty apartment. It was a representation of everything that had screwed her over anyway, so since she couldn’t yell at her estranged parents, she chose the piano instead. 

All she could think about was how she had royally fucked up that date. Maria sounded like she had wanted to see Natasha again, but Natasha didn’t think she could give Maria what she wanted. Maria sounded like a relationship person, and Natasha was very much  _ not _ a relationship person. She had somehow managed to keep Clint around as a friend, but close bonds in literally every other context tended to be a disaster. She knew better than to let people in that close now. Clint was a weird exception, because he was just as fucked up as she was.

She had hoped to get this attraction out of her system with a one night stand, since that was what had always worked before. Inevitably, the morning after, Natasha would want to get the hell out of dodge, and she would never see the woman again. But then Maria had kissed her and brushed her hair back from her face, and Natasha experienced that irritating thing called  _ feelings.  _ This was incredibly impractical and it wouldn’t do.

So by the time Natasha got home, she was incredibly upset with herself and the situation, so the piano got the brunt of it. Maria deserved someone who didn’t come from a broken family and who wasn’t completely emotionally dysfunctional, so she already knew that this was going to go nowhere. The fact that she was unable to get Maria off her mind was her problem alone, and she imagined Maria would probably get over her anyway in a few weeks or so.

Natasha drowned her sorrows in a hot shower and a glass of wine, making herself go to bed afterward, because there was really no reason to stay up. Maria had left the ball in her court when it came to texting, but she found herself still hoping that her phone might light up.  _ You’re an idiot. Go to bed.  _ Finally, a fitful sleep took her. 

Unfortunately for Natasha, she dreamed.

She couldn’t seem to get away from thoughts of Maria, even when she was trying to sleep. Since the one night stand hadn’t happened, it played out in her mind instead as she dreamed. Maria’s head was still between her legs when her alarm went off, and when Natasha woke up, she let out a growl of frustration. She supposed this was what she deserved for being the kind of rigidly scheduled person who sets her alarm for 8 AM on weekends. She positively ached between her legs, and in her sleepy stupor, she very nearly called Maria to demand that she finish what she started. Then she remembered it had been a dream, and that last night had played out quite differently. Something else ached, after that. 

_ I have to get this out of my system.  _

She forced herself to get up and get in the shower, trying to ignore it and start the day like she would normally. Eventually, though, she gave in, sliding down to sit on the shower floor, her hand slipping between her legs to give her relief. Her hand wasn’t as good as imaginary Maria, but her thoughts strayed to the woman anyway as she moved, and she let her eyes slip closed, imagining the rest of the dream play out. 

It didn’t take Natasha long to tip over the edge after that, and she felt her toes curl as sensation flooded her. She made herself stand up on shaky legs and finish her shower, wishing the hot water would wash away her remaining thoughts of Maria.  _ It’s over and done. It was just a dream.  _

Later that day, when Natasha was feeling more presentable, Clint stopped by to hang out for lunch. Natasha supposed it was good for her to have some normal human contact, so she was glad to see him. As they chatted over lunch, though, Clint was giving her an odd look, and Natasha folded her arms, stopping the conversation.

“All right, what are you looking at me like that for?” 

“You’re really mopey today. Did something happen?” Clint asked, and Natasha scowled.

“I’m not  _ mopey. _ ” She knew Clint was right, though, and she hated that he could read her so well nowadays. That was another disadvantage of close bonds. It was incredibly hard to keep up a mask around someone who knew her well, and she was just lucky that she could trust Clint. He only wanted to know because he cared about her, not because he was trying to mock her. 

“Well, if you’re not mopey, are you hungover? You don’t look hungover. You just look crabby.” Clint shrugged, and Natasha sighed.

“I had a date that went shitty, okay? So I’m kind of bummed about it.” Natasha stared down at her sandwich, not wanting to look at Clint and see him feeling sorry for her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Clint frown.

“Okay, whoa. First of all, you went on a date? Not just a hookup?” Clint asked, and Natasha cringed. 

“I kind of wanted it to be a hookup, but it didn’t go there. She’s more of a relationship person, and I fucked it up. Basically, I’m being a big baby and I need to get over her.” Natasha took a frustrated bite of her sandwich, finding it satisfying to tear the bread and vegetables. 

“Wait a minute, ‘get over her’? There are feelings involved?” 

“You don’t have to use the word ‘feelings’ like that. Christ.” 

“I keep telling you, Nat, it’s okay to have feelings for people,” Clint said, shaking his head. “I’m actually pretty happy for you if you’ve found someone you actually like.” 

“Easy for you to say. You’re more functional than me, and you have Bobbi,” Natasha said. 

“You know as well as I do that I’m just as much of a human disaster as you. But Bobbi and I still try and make it work, all right? She’s not perfect either, and I doubt your mystery woman is either.”

“ _ Mystery woman _ ?” 

“Well, you didn’t give me a name.”

Natasha gave an irritated huff, taking a sip of her drink so she didn’t have to answer right away. 

“Maria. She repaired my car. I can’t really get her out of my head, and it’s bothering me. You know I can’t do relationships.” 

“Have you  _ tried _ , though?”

Natasha was silent for a while again. She hated that he was right. Part of her wanted to just give in and try things with Maria, but the other part of her was screaming that it would end in disaster. People like her didn’t get nice things, and Maria deserved someone who wasn’t essentially a burnt out robot. 

“Look, Nat. I know lesbians do the U-haul thing, but a second date isn’t a commitment. It’s just a second date. You can still bail if you don’t feel it anymore. I think you should give her another chance,” Clint said, giving Natasha a look. She could never really tell if it was a good idea to keep him around. On one hand, she hated this, but on the other hand, he was probably right. 

“Ugh. If you insist.”

Later that evening when Clint left, Natasha stared at her phone, trying to will herself to pick it up and dial Maria’s number. She was going to try to force herself to call Maria, because there was a much higher chance of her ignoring and abandoning her phone if she tried this by text. After what seemed like an eternity, she made herself go through with it, and she hated how much her hands were shaking.

“Hello?” Maria’s voice sounded puzzled on the other end, and Natasha’s first thought was  _ Oh god, I’ve probably annoyed her and she’s busy.  _

“Hi, uh. It’s Nat.”  _ So suave, Romanoff.  _ “I thought I’d give you a call.”

Silence, and then, “...okay.” 

“I…” Natasha trailed off, feeling incredibly awkward. “I wanted to apologize for coming on too strong last night. And I was wondering if you’d like to see me again sometime. I won’t be so pushy again.” The thought filled her with terror, but the words were already out of her mouth. There was silence on the phone again, and she felt like she was going to pass out. 

“It’s all right. And I’d love that, actually,” Maria said, and Natasha breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Maria’s voice. She sounded a little pleased now, so hopefully Natasha hadn’t fucked things up for good.

“There’s a really nice city park nearby, with some pretty gardens. Would you like to go there next weekend?” Maria asked, and Natasha blinked in surprise, not expecting Maria to have suggested something involving flowers. She found herself smiling a little, though.

“That sounds wonderful. I think I know the park you’re talking about.” 

They arranged a day and time, and then Natasha said goodbye and hung up, too nervous to talk any more with Maria. She wasn’t sure if this was a wonderful decision or a terrible one, and she was entirely too aware of how this could blow up in her face.

_ A second date isn’t a commitment. We’re just seeing how things go.  _ She repeated the words to herself in hopes that she would believe them. Somehow, deep down, she knew that there was more to this, and that this probably wouldn’t be their last date. The thought both terrified and thrilled her. 


End file.
